How to Prepare Yerba Mate: A Simple Step-by-Step Routine

June 16, 2026

how to prepare yerba mate. pouring yerba mate,

Time to Read: 7 minutes

Quick Overview

Hey, I'm Jason from Yerba Crew, and this is the quick, simple way I make my mate every morning. Below is exactly how I do it, start to finish, plus the little details that make it taste good and last for hours.

Here's what we'll cover:

What you need and the right water temperature
How to fill and shake the gourd
Setting the “mountain” and placing the bombilla
Pouring the water without burning the yerba
What to expect on the first sips, and why messing up is normal

Yerba mate is more than a drink. It's a tradition from Argentina and across South America that brings people together, and everyone ends up with their own little routine. Mine I like to keep quick and simple in the morning, just wake up and go. Here's the whole thing, the way I actually do it.

One heads up before we start: you're going to mess up the first few times. You'll probably get some leaves pulled up through the straw, or soak the yerba too fast. That's completely normal. It's a feel thing, and you learn it by doing it. So don't stress about being perfect.

What do you need to get started?

Three things, plus hot water: a gourd, a bombilla, and some yerba.

A flat lay of Yerba Crew Corrientes Traditional mate bag next to a thermos and cups on a checkered picnic blanket. — My setup: yerba, a gourd, a bombilla, and a thermos of hot water.

Here's what I reach for:

A gourd. I use a wooden mate gourd. If you don't have one, stainless steel, calabash, or ceramic all work. And if you don't have any kind of gourd yet, you can honestly start with a teacup or a coffee cup.
A bombilla. This is a metal straw with a strainer built into the bottom. It's the key piece for drinking mate the traditional way, since it filters the leaves as you sip.
Yerba mate. I'm using our Yerba Crew yerba from Corrientes, Argentina.
Hot water in a thermos. Aim for somewhere between 155 and 180 degrees Fahrenheit. I go for 155 because my electric kettle sets to it exactly.

Tip

Never use boiling water. Anything much over 180°F scorches the yerba and turns it harsh and bitter. Hot, not boiling, is the whole game.

How do you prepare yerba mate step by step?

Once your water is hot, the whole thing takes about a minute. Here's my order.

Fill your thermos with hot water at 155 to 180°F. Not boiling.
Fill the gourd about two-thirds of the way with yerba (some people go up to three-quarters). This is a lot more than you'd use for tea. Think of it as the inverse of green tea: instead of a little leaf and mostly water, you want mostly leaf and a little space for water.
Cover the top with your palm, flip the gourd over, give it a shake, then flip it back. This brings the fine dust and small particles up toward the top so they don't clog your bombilla later. (Do this and you're officially part of the yerba mate family now.)
Set the “mountain.” Tip the gourd so the yerba settles at an angle, leaving a lower side and a higher, dry side. Pour about an ounce of room-temperature (or even cold) water into the low part of the mountain and let it sit for around 30 seconds. You only do this cold-water step once. It preps the yerba so the mountain holds together.
Slide the bombilla in. Run the strainer down along the inside wall on the low side of the mountain, wiggle it to the bottom, then settle it at an angle so the strainer sits in the center at the bottom. Try not to stir it around after this, you want to keep that mountain intact.
Pour 1 to 2 ounces of hot water on the bombilla side only. Keep the high, dry part of the mountain dry for later. Then sip. When you hear that empty slurping sound, that round is done, so refill and keep going.

Jason pouring loose-leaf yerba from a Yerba Crew bag into a gourd in the park. — Fill the gourd about two-thirds with yerba. Way more than you'd use for tea.

A hand holds a mate gourd with the bombilla set into the yerba. — Slide the bombilla down the low side of the mountain and let it settle at the bottom.

Hot water pours from a thermos spout into a gourd of yerba mate. — Pour on the bombilla side, and keep the dry side of the mountain for later.

What should you expect on the first sips?

The first pour always goes fast. The dry yerba drinks up that first bit of water almost instantly, so what you pull through the straw is whatever hasn't been absorbed yet. That's normal.

Wait maybe 30 seconds to a minute, then pour another couple of ounces, again on the bombilla side. Each round the yerba opens up a little more and the flavor settles in.

Two people drink and pour mate from a Yerba Crew cup with a black bombilla on a couch. — Sip until you hear the empty slurp, then refill and keep going.

Tip

Don't turn it into yerba mate soup. Keep the water on the bombilla side and don't soak all the yerba at once. If you flood the whole thing, it pulls all the flavor out at once and your mate won't last nearly as long.

How long does one gourd of yerba mate last?

A full thermos of hot water and one gourd of yerba should last you around two hours if you're drinking by yourself. You'll probably start out pouring every couple of minutes, and then the good, steady energy kicks in, you get into whatever you're doing, and suddenly you look up and 20 minutes have gone by since your last sip. For me that's the morning, and it's excellent.

You're going to mess up, and that's kind of the point

Seriously, don't worry about getting it perfect. The first few times you'll pull some leaves up through the straw, or your mountain will collapse, or you'll pour a little too fast. Everybody does. None of it ruins the mate.

Preparing mate is a feel you build over a week or two of doing it, not something you nail on day one. And honestly, learning it with someone else, passing the gourd around and laughing at the messy first attempts, is half the fun. That's what #DrinkToConnect is all about.

A group of friends around a table playing cards while one drinks mate, a kettle in the foreground. — The routine gets easy fast, especially when you learn it with other people.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many refills do you get from one gourd of yerba?

A lot. A single fill can be topped up with hot water many times, often for an hour or two, until the flavor fades. Once it tastes washed out, empty the gourd and start fresh.

Will yerba mate keep me up at night?

Yerba mate has caffeine, so if you're sensitive to it, it's best to enjoy it earlier in the day rather than late at night. You can read more in our guide to the health benefits of yerba mate.

What does yerba mate taste like?

Earthy, herbal, and a little bitter, especially at first. Most people grow to love that character within a week or so. A yerba with more stems tastes milder if you want an easier start.

Do I need a special gourd and bombilla to start?

A gourd and a metal bombilla are ideal, but you can start with any cup you have. The one piece really worth getting is the bombilla, since its built-in strainer is what lets you sip without a mouthful of leaves. A starter kit bundles everything together.

Why do you use so much yerba?

Mate is the inverse of tea. You use a lot of leaf and only a little water at a time, then refill many times. That's what gives you a long, steady session instead of one quick cup.

Start your own routine

That's my morning mate, start to finish. Give it a few tries, find the water temperature and yerba you like best, and it'll quickly become second nature. If you want to put a kit together, explore our yerba mate, gourds, bombillas, and starter kits, and come get started with us. Enjoy your yerba mate, and #DrinkToConnect.